Tyler Lowry isn't old enough yet Although no votes have been cast yet, he still outperformed 100 other players in the first round of the Sony Open in Hawaii on Thursday.
The 17-year-old shot a 3-under 67 and is currently tied for 26th place after the first day. It's an incredible accomplishment considering he's the only teenager in the field.
“Today was a lot of fun,” Rory said.
“I was really nervous at the start and had some shaky shots here and there, but I came back and had a good process all day.”
Lowry suffered two early bogeys on the second and fifth holes, both par-4s, and his scorecard reflected those nerves. The bogey on No. 5 was caused by a three-putt from about 15 feet. But then Lowry, who plays collegiately at UCLA, made four consecutive birdies from the par-3 seventh hole.
“I just kept making good shots,” Lowry explained.
“Actually, nothing has changed all that much. I just keep focusing on what I’m doing, making sure I’m in the moment, hitting good shots and having a good pre-shot routine. I just kept trying to calm myself down and it worked out just like that.”
Lowry hit a 28-foot shot from the front of the green on the par-4 10th hole, then made par on the 11th hole, followed by birdie, bogey, and birdie on the 12th, 13th, and 14th holes. He then finished with four consecutive pars, scoring a 67.
“It was great,” Laurie emphasized.
“It was a lot of fun.”
Lowery said the same about the state championships, adding that he was more nervous than he was during the Sony Open qualifier in November.
“I’m not going to lie, I was pretty nervous at the high school state championship,” Lowry said.
“But for me, I feel like I'm really grateful just to play this week. It's like I came out of here, which is really cool. I'm just trying to enjoy the moment. It takes a little bit of pressure off me. I feel like it was.”
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation's Playing Through. Follow him on X @jack_milko.
